FGM: concerns over potential backslide in Egypt

Women left behind after revolution, says former minister Khattab

(ANSAmed) - ROME, FEBRUARY 6 - Former Egyptian minister Moushira
Khattab commented on Wednesday on the Supreme Court's decision
to reject an appeal by Islamist lawyers to lift the ban on
female genital mutilation (FGM). She called it a ''historic''
decision'', given the ''present situation in Egypt''. The ban
was initially brought in under Nasser and supported by numerous
civil society organisations. A widespread social and cultural
campaign focusing on rural areas was later conducted by the
National Council for Childhood and Motherhood, led by Khattab
from 2001. The former minister was in Rome for a conference on
FGM which drew to a close yesterday.
''Remarkably, in the span of 5 years we succeeded in changing
what was a socially accepted practice into a crime punishable by
law'', Moushira Khattab said speaking to ANSAmed. ''A success
made possible by our role as a catalyst for a courageous grass
roots movement that declared their categorical refusal of this
harmful practice''. But presently, she added, ''the great role
played by the mass media to raise awareness on the negative
impact of the crime has completely disappeared. The role model
has changed and the message is now different. Prosecution has
faded away. It all points towards regression to early 20th
century discourse''. Thanks in part to the position taken by
such high-profile religious authorities as Grand Mufti Mohammed
al-Tantawi, opposed by the opinion of other accredited Islamic
scholars, the campaign sought to raise awareness that genital
mutilations were not a divine order but an attack on the
physical integrity and rights of the individual, and that they
also pose a serious health risk. She noted that while 97% of
women in childbearing age had undergone the procedure in 2000,
the percentage has since been brought down substantially among
girl children, including those in rural areas.
The former minister said that the ''ultimate goal'' of the
campaign was to make female genital mutilation a crime under
article 242 of the Penal Code. The law was introduced in 2008
and calls for fines and prison sentences of up to two years for
those who break the law, and the attempt to repeal the law
recently rejected by the court dates back to those days.

However, over the past two years there has been ''a setback'' as
concerns prior achievements.
Women's ''heroic role was pivotal for the success of the
January 25th revolution'', she says. ''Today they have been left
behind'', and ''have been denied their rights to participate in
shaping post revolution Egypt. They were excluded for the group
that made the constitutional amendments in March 2011, then
marginalized in the Constituent Committee that wrote the 2012
constitution. Their representation in the Post revolution
Parliament has been shameful with less than
2%''.''Post-revolution Egypt is becoming increasingly difficult
for women&#8217;s rights. This is due to the deep-seated patriarchal
customs and the association of past authoritarian regimes.

Dormant conservative value systems have surfaced in the midst of
political change. Critical among them are the conservative
religious discourse that gained ground by stealth''. ''More
serious of all is women against women&#8217;s rights. Leading women in
the post revolution regime both as members of parliament or
Islamist party members speak publicly against women&#8217;s rights.

They advocate FGM and child marriage. The media is now hogged by
leading figures of political Islam who are pushing women back to
their medieval role. During the presidential campaigns part of
the efforts to buy the support of voters, some candidates sent
caravans to circumcise girls free of charge, in violation of the
law that criminalized FGM'', said Moushira Khattab, now a
Public Policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington
DC, a visiting professor at Perugia University, and a member of
the Egyptian Council on Foreign Affairs.

As concerns what effects the new Constitution could have on this
issue,''it stipulates for broad principles and still awaits a
battalion of laws to fill many constitutional gaps. It all
depends on who will formulate and pass these laws''. ''Many
articles in the constitution can push women to the back seat
(article 2, 4, 219, 10 and 11). Together these articles can
establish a theocratic state and set a strategy that subjects
legislation to religious leaders and gives the judge to make
ruling based on some vague constitutional clauses such as
&#8220;keeping the morals of the society&#8221;, said Moushira Khattab.
She went on to speak about the future of the struggle against
FGM in the rest of the world and after the historic December 20
UN resolution, noting that ''with increasing immigration, FGM
has become a global issue. The adoption of the UNGA resolution
marks a milestone in the global fight against violence and
discrimination against women and girls in general and FGM in
particular. This milestone wouldn't have been possible without
the sincere and courageous efforts of Senator Emma Bonino, Vice
President of the Italian Senate and founder of &#8221;No Peace
without Justice&#8221;. Emma has lent this cause her unwavering
support to the eradication of FGM. The government of Italy has
lent enormous support, setting an example for other European
countries. The UNGA resolution is not the end but rather a
beginning, and the Rome conference has achieved solid results by
drawing up a roadmap for the future''. (ANSAmed).